Media scandal!!! And something about John McCain

The New York Times printed a story this week suggesting that John McCain may have had a romantic relationship with a lobbyist in the late '90s, basing the story on some anonymous sources and one on-the-record former McCain aide.

The New Republic, meanwhile, aims to tell the story behind the story. TNR's piece is also highly critical of the Times: "... The new information it reveals focuses on the private matters of the candidate, and relies entirely on the anecdotal evidence of McCain's former staffers to justify the peice--both personal and anecdotal elements ususual in the Gray Lady."

(Update: Slate's Jack Shafer defends the Times.)

Says TNR, the four reporters assigned to the story believed it was solid, but higher ups in New York disagreed. Eventually, it was published. TNR seems to think it was published when it was to beat TNR's background piece. The Times claims it was published when it was "ready."

It seems we are not getting the entire story -- neither the one about McCain and the lobbyist nor the one about the story itself.

The McCain camp, meanwhile, is trying to make the story about the Times itself, joining the usual conservative view that the paper is a liberal attack unit. This particular liberal attack unit, it should be noted, endorsed McCain. For president. And while the paper may not be rock solid in this case, the story does raise legitimate questions that go beyond the possible romance.

On a more personal note, when I spend my mornings reading juicy media stories like this, I realize that I need to eventually get back into journalism.

Hurdles cleared

Well then. College sure was fun. Fortunately, I did, in fact, graduate. I've never been one to worry too much about school stuff, especially when most of my time in college was dominated by the newspaper -- and, ahem .... socializing.

But today I finally got proof from the university that I am a graduate. This is important, because the JET Program requires this proof. So now it's down to 4.5 weeks before departure, Aug. 5, from Portland to Tokyo for orientation, then it's off to somewhere in Mie-ken (they still have not told me which city I'll live in ... this must mean they're fighting over me, right?).

I was pretty sure I had actually graduated, because I passed all my classes (whew!) and had figured things out with an adviser, but until today I was consumed by a fear that something had gone wrong, forcing me take a summer class or something horrible like that.

But no, I have a bachelor's degree in political science.

As for the Japan preparations, I have some nice luggage, but I'm not even close to sure what I'm going to put in there. I still need to go shopping for some business attire (won't need to wear it too often thankfully) and other things.

For now I'm celebrating OSU baseball winning the national title ... again. I was there last year and both years I edited the 8-page special section for the Barometer.

Now that school is over I may be writing here more often, but I may not have much interesting to say until I get there.

And we're back ... this time for real

Well then.

Oh how the weeks pass and the blog remains unchecked, would-be posts lost to the day-to-day housekeeping duties like making a newspaper.

But all that's over now. My year as editor in chief, plagued by an unfortunately low level of scandal, has come and gone. For my final term as an undergraduate, I have been reduced to a copy editor, two nights a week, instead of the usual, oh, say, 40-plus hours a week, plus class, but not really class, because honestly, how often did I really go?

Not that I'm complaining. I was fortunate to get the job and it was a pleasure. I love newspapering from all angles, and now I'll finally be able to report again along with my duties on the copy desk.

And, just maybe I'll be able to blog again. But as any of my long-time blog readers know, and I'm talking directly to my brother Phil, my mom and my friend Andrew, I don't have the purest of blog track records.

So today I officially announce the end of my un-planned blogging hiatus. For now, it's back to seasons six and seven of The West Wing, which I didn't get to watch the first time around because of my love for journalism.

By the by, Mr. Nealon himself is blogging again, and so too, at least occasionally, is Kirsten.

Let there be voice (and music)

I bought a good quality digital voice recorder today to use for interviews on the job at the newspaper as well as anything else I can think to record. Maybe I can do some "blogcasting." Like, you know, me reading my blog entries. With passion. Or emotion.

Meanwhile, while it's not pro quality when it comes to music, we captured for the first time Brother Chris' Alphabet Song which for you young kids out there, contains explicit lyrics.

Stay tuned for more from this device.

Confusion can be deadly

The Oregonian, in its Sunday edition, reports that confusion and communication gaps hurt the search for the missing Kim family.

The story suggests that an inexperienced emergency services coordinator made some major mistakes. It adds that the undersherrif who was behind the mic at the press conferences declined to take a call from the emergency services coordinator because he was watching an OSU football game on TV.

These are just some of the problems. It's nice to see this kind of reporting, which will hopefully avoid these kinds of mishaps in the future.

I'm still digesting the lengthy story so I'm short on commentary at the moment.

Read it here.

Red Ink

I found among my mom's current lot of Netflix choices a film called Tinta roja or Red Ink, a Spanish-language, English-subtitled drama set in Peru.

The lead character Alfonso is an aspiring writer who signs on at a not-so-classy tabloid newspaper planning to cover the arts. Instead he gets thrown into the strange world of reporting crime.

When he first sees the sensationalism that drives the paper, he balks, but eventually he becomes a natural at bringing drama into any murder case, whether the drama was really there or not. He becomes a key player on a team that includes his sleazy boss Faundez, a wise driver who is perhaps the film's most likable character, and a usually silent photographer who specializes is making victims' families cry so he can make the best photos.

The plot unwinds on two key developments that bring the reporters own lives into their coverage area, exposing hypocrisy in the experienced Faundez and principles in the transformed Alfonso.

This film is worth a viewing for anyone interested in journalism, but more than being about newspapermen it is simply a human drama -- and like the journalism they practice in the movie, it may be at times a bit over the top.